Albus knocked politely on the front door. Several cheerful voices drifted outside. Lily answered the door.
"Albus! Come in, come in!" she exclaimed. Albus followed Lily inside. James and Sirius sat on the couch roaring with laughter while Remus appeared to be blushing.
"Hi Albus," James said. "What's the meaning of this little meeting?" Albus took a seat on a free chair and laid a tattered book carefully on his lap.
"Can I get you anything?" Lily asked as she took a seat on the couch between Remus and James.
"Oh no, Lily, I'm fine. I'm here to give you this and to talk to you." Albus handed Lily the book.
"What is it?" Sirius asked as he leaned forward in his seat.
"They're photos of Rose growing up." Lily flipped through the album, carefully tracing the photos with her fingertips.
"Where did you get this?" James asked as he looked at the photos over Lily's shoulder.
"I've collected them over the years as I kept an eye on Rose."
"Wait, you knew that Rose was alive this entire time!?" James exclaimed angrily. "When did you plan on telling us this!?" Sirius got to his feet.
"Do you know what James and Lily have been through?" he demanded. "They thought that they had lost a child! How about Remus? He was separated from his godchild. Seeing as I went through the same thing, I know how agonizing that feels." Remus simply sat on the couch with his head in his hands. Lily pursed her lips and attempted to hold back her tears.
"You're unbelievable! We've been wondering about our daughter for over a year and a half, but you couldn't relieve our worries," James spat.
"Stop it! Just stop it!" Lily screamed as she leapt to her feet. "James, Sirius, please let Albus explain himself. I'm sure he has good reasons for this."
"Thank you, Lily." Albus folded his hands neatly in front of him. "I wanted to let everything play out on their own."
"But you still could have told us," Remus pointed out in a stressed voice. It was the first time he had spoken since Albus' arrival.
"I feel that I made the correct choice, whether or not you understand that." Remus settled back in his seat. He couldn't wrap his mind around Albus' thinking.
Tonks was flipping through the Daily Prophet when Remus got home from the Potter's. two steaming bowls of soup sat on the table.
"Did you wait for me?" Remus asked before kissing Tonks' cheek softly.
"I didn't feel like eating along," Tonks replied as she put away her reading. Remus slid into the chair across from her. "What did Albus want?"
"He knew that Rose has been alive and well this entire time," Remus replied bitterly.
"Oh, Remus, are you okay about that?" Remus took a bite of his soup.
"I don't know right now. James and Sirius are furious though."
"They have a right to be. I know I would be upset." Tonks put her left hand on her stomach and began to eat. "Any news on finding Rose?" Remus sighed sadly.
"No." Tonks slid her hand across the table and into Remus'.
"We'll find her. Ginny and Hermione are going down to Diagon Alley everyday to look for her." Remus squeezed Tonks' hand before going back to his food in silence.